Always
by Richinlove
Summary: SEQUEL TO NEVER NORMAL! I recommend you read that first. Slightly AU since I have things a little different than what the book said. Peeta and Katniss are expecting their first child! But Coin's threat to kill the baby is still haunting them. Will they be able to overcome all their fears and threats? Rated T just to be safe. I do sometimes describe nightmares and suggest topics.


"Peeta!" I scream as I wake up. I grab my stomach and feel familiar strong arms wrap around me. I lay my head on, what I guess is, his chest.

"It's okay, it was just a nightmare. I'm right here." I hear the familiar voice, which belongs to the arms around me, say. I nod slowly, keeping my eyes close. I feel a hand lay across my own. "Is the baby okay?" I hear him ask with concern. I nod again. His hand leaves my stomach and I soon feel it under my chin, lifting it upwards. "Hey, look at me." I slowly obey, meeting with two beautiful blue eyes. Peeta smiles at me.

"I lost the baby." I say, referring to my nightmare. "And you." I finish.

"Oh. Well, it wasn't real. The baby and I are perfectly alright." he says.

"What time is it?" I ask.

"Too early to think about getting up. Lie back down and get some more sleep, okay?" he suggest.

"Okay, I'll try. Stay with me?" I ask. I don't want him to leave my side for even a second at this moment. He smiles softly and nods.

"Always, Katniss, always." he says as he lies down next to me. He pulls me closer to him and wraps his arms around me. I lay my head on his chest and listen to his heartbeat. The sound comforts me. I know that as long as I hear it, my Dandelion is still with me. Until it stops, he'll always be right by my side. That's all I need to know before I fall back to sleep.

* * *

"Good morning, Beautiful. No more nightmares?" I hear Peeta ask. I groan as the sunlight hits my eyes. He chuckles at me. I glare at him before I close my eyes again. I just need 10 more minutes. "Oh no you don't, it's time to wake up." he says with a laugh. I stick my tongue at him.

"I am awake… at the moment." I say sleepily. I hear him sigh playfully.

"Good! Then you're a third of the way there! Now you just have to get out of bed, and then get dressed. Come on, today is going to be a big, big, big day!" he says trying to mimic Effie.

"Why must you be so cheerful in the mornings?" I say crankily. He chuckles again.

"Because I wake up to a beautiful face every morning. Why must you be so cranky in the mornings? You used to get up as early as me."

"Yeah, then I got pregnant." I shoot back to him. "I don't have the energy that I used to, and whenever I wake up, I usually puke my guts out." I open my eyes to see him staring at me for a moment. I start to regret what I said. He's already stressed about the subject. I'm not sure how Peeta puts up with me and my mood swings.

"But in the end, we'll have a beautiful baby. It's going to be worth it, right?" he says trying to cheer me up. He learnt a while back not to take offense to my mood swings. I just nod. It will be worth it, if we can get rid of Coin.

"That still doesn't change my mind about getting up, Peeta." I say.

"Is that so? Well maybe this will help." he says as he rips the blankets off of me. I glare at him. He just laughs. "Time to get up, even for pregnant women."

"You get me pregnant, and then won't let me rest. What made me think you were a sweet man?" I ask teasingly.

"Same reason I thought you were a sweet woman, I guess." I just snort. "When do you plan on getting up?"

"Not until I warm up, at least."

"Oh, so if I warm you back up, you'll get up?" he asks, raising one eyebrow.

"It's very possible." I tell him. He grins and gets back on the bed. He gets on his hands and knees and crawls over to me. "You know, placing the blankets back on my would be much easier."

"Oh, I know. But I like this idea better." he says with a smirk. He wraps his arms around me and pulls me as close as he can. He rubs my arms until they warm up. Then he lays me back on the bed and uses his torso to straddle me. I look at him and give him a questioning look. He just smiles and leans in. He kisses me quickly then moves to my cheeks. He covers my face in light kisses. Then he goes down to my neck. He stays there the longest, just kissing. "Are you warming up, Baby?" he asks into my neck. He's breath tickles me. I feel my cheeks warm. It's been over a year of marriage and I still blush when he calls me "Baby" or "Babe". I nod slowly.

He moves down toward my stomach and lifts up my shirt. Before I can question what he's doing, he starts kissing my stomach. I hear him mumble something. It sounded like he was talking to the baby. I smile realizing what he's doing. He continues to do that for a while. Then he moves back up to my lips and gives me one last kiss.

"Anywhere else that might need warming up?" he asks. I shake my head no. I open my mouth to say something, when I feel fluttering in my stomach. I gasp and Peeta's eyes widen. "What's wrong?"

"I-I don't know. I felt something move in my stomach. It felt like fluttering." I say nervously. Peeta's face turns softer and he smiles.

"Katniss, I think that was baby. Did your mother say that you would feel it move anytime now?" he reminds me. She did tell me, but I didn't think it would feel like that. Then again, I didn't know what to expect. All I know is now I know for certain that there's a living baby inside of me. My heart starts racing. I feel the fluttering again and I run to the toilet. Peeta's right behind me, holding my hair back. This is the normal for us right now. I rinse my mouth out and sit on the bathroom floor. Peeta sits next to me and holds me in his arms.

"There really is something inside of me, Peeta! I don't think I can do this." I say.

"You can do this. I know you can. You're the strongest woman I know. And it's not something; it's someone- our baby. Everything's going to be alright."

"But what if I can't?"

"Look at me Katniss." he says, using is hand to bring my chin up. I do as I'm told and look at him. "You can do this. I have faith in you. No one ever said this was going to be easy. But I'm gonna be right next to you every step of the way."

"But- but what if something happens to you? What do I do then? I can't live without you." I ask. He thinks about this for a moment.

"You'll always have a part of me." he tells me placing his hand on my stomach. "I don't want you to give up- not ever. You'll still have your mother and sister. You'll have Haymitch. You'll have the baby. You won't be alone."

"But without you, I don't have anything to live for. You know that I just sat there in that rocking chair until you came back." Peeta shakes his head.

"Not real. You have the baby now. I'm not planning on going anywhere, but if something happens, you have the baby. Now come on, let's go get some breakfast. I know you must be hungry." I nod and he helps me get up. I wrap my arms around his neck and pull him in. He willingly kisses me back. I feel the fluttering again and I pull away.

"It's moving again." I say. I'm not scared, but I'm not excited either. I'm trying to figure out what I feel. I do know I feel Peeta's hand move to my stomach.

"I can't feel it." he says, sounding like a child that can't have a cookie.

"I doubt you could. It's just fluttering."

"Oh. I always thought I would be able to."

"You will. I think the baby has to get bigger or something first. Then you will and you can feel it kick too." I tell him. I smile just thinking of his reaction when that happens. He grins ear to ear.

"Good. Can't let you have all the fun." he says with a wink.

"Oh yes, fun indeed. I think I was promised food a minute ago. I have yet to see anything though." I say teasingly.

"Yes ma'am! Let's go get some food."

**~A/N~**

**So here's the first chapter of the squeal to Never Normal! I haven't decided if this is a good idea. Sooo... Let me know what you think and if this seems like a good idea to continue. If not, I'll keep this as a one-shot or something. **

**I know I said I would write the whole thing then post... but I liked the idea of having it up chapter at a time. Gives me a reason to hurry and write. **

**But beware, I am still very busy! It's Christmas time and I have lots of stuff going on. Parties, school, work, musical, life, etc. So, we'll see how fast I can get chapters out. =P**

**~Richinlove**


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